Cynicism
'Cynicism:' (n. pron. sin.'''ih.siz.um), the belief that people act only on self-interest, distrust of human behavior and motives (Merriam, 1978). Behavior includes sarcastic (insulting) remarks, sleeplessness, jumpiness, gun collection, substance abuse, often assuming others are lying, violent rages, etc. It differs from paranoia and '''misanthropy, similar behaviors, by different mental illnesses. Cynicism is a post-traumatic stress disorder symptom. Paranoia is a schizophrenia symptom and misanthropy is a depression symptom. Bmup1p2012.jpg|Freddy gets mugged. ''Cynics'' often speak of a "dog-eat-dog world" (Social Darwinism), have to "watch their back" and "keep their blaster handy," as if their world was a tough neighborhood, battlefield or disaster area. Their beliefs stem from past traumas, such as crime, war and disasters and are based on their nightmares and flashbacks. ''Paranoid'' people speak of conspiracy theories and apocalypse, as if they lived in a decadent, disaster-prone society ruled covertly by secret societies, monsters and surrounded by imperialistic, hostile nations. They falsely believe others are stalking them in groups, plotting against and gossiping about them. They think their loved ones are cheating on them or secretly replaced by imposters. Their views come from hallucinations and delusions. Many were immigrants bullied as children.They inherited their condition from families with a history of mental illness. The condition tends to cause many frivolous lawsuits. ''Misanthropes'' make abusive, bigoted and violent remarks and behavior, since they hate all social groups equally. Their beliefs are partly cultural, as frequent betrayal by villains or being raised in an imperialistic, segregated and fundamentalist society, hence the multiple social prejudices, and partly neurological, hence the clinical mood disorder and thought disorders. Many bigots, bullies and jerks have this condition. It also contributes to mass shootings (TV Tropes Wiki, 2006-18; Wikipedia, 2006-18). Examples: Cynicism is common among hard-boiled private eyes in film noir movies, tough sergeants in war movies, gangsters in gangster movies, etc. In Real Life, it occurs in some police officers after 5 years on patrol, contributing to police corruption and brutality. It can corrupt people into road rage and drive-by shootings, because thinking people are untrustworthy can make someone carry concealed guns everywhere and overreact in heated arguments (TV Tropes Wiki, 2006-18; Grant, 1986; DiCanio, 1993). 'In Brother Muscle:' * When Ordinary High School Student Freddy Hartmann was threatened with a Sinister Switchblade by a Delinquent in his Inner City School, the principal falsely thought Freddy provoked his assailant, saying "nobody just pulls a knife on someone, out of the clear blue sky!" Fortunately, his Mama Bear mother defended him. Presumably, the principal was affected by Occupational Burnout, from years of overwork, school violence and helplessness, probably since he was a teacher there. * In Renown & Fascinator, the proposed reimagined series, the principal had a history of bullying by his students, parents, principal and school administrators since he was a teacher, which wore him down until he became a rude, depressed alcoholic who kept a .45-Cal. Desert Eagle pistol in his desk, with his whiskey bottle. He initially refused to call police, despite another student's death, when student Darryl Frederick Hartmann was threatened with a knife after witnessing a Knife Fight. "Snitches get stitches!" he said. He tried to blame Darryl's gender-variant, Goth and "class clown" behavior for provoking his opponent. The Delinquent really thought he Knows Too Much. Darryl's parents defended him and angrily pressured the principal to call the police by threats of legal action and going to the press. As Yuppie executives, they could easily afford counsel. Under such pressure, he complied. * Due to Los Rios' drug-related high violent crime rate, their companies' right-wing corporate cultures, their own abusive childhoods, Inner City School educations and widespread fear of HIV during the Eighties, Darryl's parents were abusive and transphobic to him and hated his Saturday morning cartoons (Lathan, 2013; 2019). Bmup1p3013.jpg|Freddy's school shooting 'Acknowledgements:' * DiCanio, Margaret, The Encyclopedia of Violence (1993) * Grant, Barry Keith, The Film Genre Reader (1986) * Lathan, D.V., Brother Muscle & Ultraperson #1-2 (''1993; rev. 1999; publ. 2013) * Merriam-Webster, ''Webster's New Ideal Dictionary (1978) * TV Tropes Wiki, (2006-18) * Wikipedia, (2006-18) . Category:Alignments